1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to steam generating apparatus, and more particularly to such apparatus for efficient generation of high pressure steam and gases for use in driving engines and other utilization devices.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Steam operated engines have long been recognized as an efficient and effective source of power for many diverse applications. However, in many instances, steam engines have found very limited acceptance in view of their complexity, their large size, their substantial fuel requirements, or their detrimental exhaust emissions. It has also been recognized that many of the underlying problems in connection with providing a more compact, less cumbersome, and less costly steam engine have arisen from the difficulty of providing a satisfactory source of high pressure, high pressure steam.
Conventional boilers and the like are relatively impractical for many applications in terms of both size and weight, and moreover are a source of high air pollution. Other, more sophisticated, steam generation techniques have also been proposed in recent years, and again have proven to exhibit substantial limitations and disadvantages, and frequently are simply too complex and expensive to be practical.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,751,905 represents a substantial advance and discloses a steam-gas generating apparatus wherein a cylinder defining a combustion chamber cooperates with a hydraulic accumulator to enable the generation of high pressure, high temperature steam. It has been discovered, however, that while such approach effectively generates high pressure, high temperature steam, overall operating efficiency is limited by the design of the hydraulic accumulator system with the result that less steam than might be desired is produced.